Most efficient way to save energy and money

What is the most efficient way to save energy and money? The internet is filled with top 10 list on how to lower your electric bill or how to save more energy so you have a smaller carbon footprint. Most of these lists are actions you can take in order to lower your electric bill. But what is the most efficient way to go about this? For example, if I replace my old windows with new ones, how much will I save in the long run? If I replace my furnace in order help the environment, what the reduction of CO2 in my carbon footprint?

This is the first part of 5 part series, starting with most efficient ways to save energy and money at home. This first part will include the actions you can take at home, on your own, without the help of government, that can lower your carbon footprint and energy spending. We listed the most common actions recommended by government, energy utility websites and scientists. We compared the scientific numbers with actual field results from surveys done by utility companies.

The best way to save energy and money has to be the most efficient way. Most of the list on the internet and government websites fail the public by not saving them any money or energy. Because they give tips that will not have impact on their bills or carbon footprint for a long time or not at all. Without further do, here is our list.

Most efficient Actions at Home

ActionSavings – Cost in 10 years
Furnace Fan on change to auto$9,058.13
Insulate empty attic    bypass seal, 1000 ft2$3,529.07
2nd fridge get rid of / unplug A27$3,390.33
Insulate empty walls dense pack, 1000 ft2$2,552.66
Freezer get rid of / unplug$2,264.53
Waterbed use quilted pad, no heat$2,264.53
TV off when not used vs. background noise$1,941.03
Replace thermostat with Smart Wifi thermostat$1,611.63
Strategic Dense Pack in tricky homes$1,588.04
Stereo off when not used$1,552.82
Fix hot water leak$1,494.00
Fans, drapes, etc. instead of Air Conditioning$1,423.42
Setback Heat 8°F, 8 hrs/day$1,384.60
Replace 15 bulbs with CFLs$1,357.54
Turn off heat and close off unused rooms$1,294.02
Security Lighting: motion detector$1,082.27
Computer off when not used vs. screen saver$1,035.22
Lower Heating Thermostat$1,035.22
Air Seal using blower door$943.40
Replace programmable thermostat with Smart Wifi$641.11
Shorter/Fewer Showers reduce by 4 minutes/day$388.21
Clothesline 1⁄2 of loads, 2x savings if electric dryer$362.33
Power Strip: TV+ digital cable & satellite boxes$349.39
Cold Wash Laundry 1⁄2 hot loads to warm/cold$323.50
Power Strip: Computer+$323.50
Insulate attic: add to existing bypass seal$299.92
Very low flow showerhead <1.8 gpm$282.33
Humidifier unplug – not needed in tight home$258.80
Replace old (pre-93) fridge$164.62
Fans off when room is empty in summer$155.28

Least Efficient Actions At Home

ActionSavings – Cost in 10 years
Replace 15 old windows-$28,352.15
Tankless gas water heater-$3,776.41
Replace old furnace w/92+% avg. use-$2,382.48
Cool Roof (white roof coating on flat)-$1,517.61
Insulate attic: some existing no seal-$570.60
Install Attic Fan-$411.75
Replace old dishwasher-$409.42
Tune Up Gas Furnace (annual)-$247.05
Caulk/Weatherstrip Windows/Doors-$211.77
Seal basement ducts unless big holes-$211.77
Insulate basement ceiling 1000 ft2-$147.09
Replace old furnace w/92% if heat>1200 th-$117.94
Replace old Clothes Washer1 load/day-$94.19
Hot Water Pipe Insulation  after first few feet-$20.00
Use ceiling fan in winter$0.00
Close Drapes on winter nights unless good seal$0.00
Unplug cell phone charger$12.94
Close refrigerator door quickly$12.94
Keep refrigerator full, add water bottles, etc.$12.94
Change furnace filters monthly vs. once per season$32.35
Use carafe instead of coffeemaker warmer 1hr/day$64.70
Clean refrigerator coils$64.70
Cook with lids on pots$77.64

 CO2 Savings per Action

ActionCo2-10y
Furnace Fan on change to auto42000
Replace old furnace w/92% if heat>1200 th32000
Insulate empty attic    bypass seal, 1000 ft226000
Insulate empty walls dense pack, 1000 ft222000
Replace old furnace w/92+% avg. use20000
Strategic Dense Pack in tricky homes18000
2nd fridge get rid of / unplug A2716500
Waterbed use quilted pad, no heat11250
Air Seal using blower door10000
Replace old (pre-93) fridge10000
TV off when not used vs. background noise9000
Replace thermostat with Smart Wifi thermostat9000
Replace old Clothes Washer1 load/day9000
Stereo off when not used7500
Fix hot water leak7500
Setback Heat 8°F, 8 hrs/day7500
Replace 15 bulbs with CFLs7500
Fans, drapes, etc. instead of Air Conditioning7150
Insulate attic: add to existing bypass seal7000
Replace 15 old windows7000
Lower Heating Thermostat6500
Security Lighting: motion detector6200
Freezer get rid of / unplug6000
Turn off heat and close off unused rooms6000
Computer off when not used vs. screen saver6000
Tankless gas water heater6000
Replace programmable thermostat with Smart Wifi4500
Insulate basement ceiling 1000 ft24000
Insulate attic: some existing no seal3000
Seal basement ducts unless big holes2500
Replace old dishwasher2500
Shorter/Fewer Showers reduce by 4 minutes/day1800
Clothesline 1⁄2 of loads, 2x savings if electric dryer1700
Very low flow showerhead <1.8 gpm1550
Cold Wash Laundry 1⁄2 hot loads to warm/cold1500
Power Strip: Computer+1500
Caulk/Weatherstrip Windows/Doors1500
Humidifier unplug – not needed in tight home1350
Cool Roof (white roof coating on flat)1300
Power Strip: TV+ digital cable & satellite boxes worst1150
Fans off when room is empty in summer780
Cook with lids on pots350
Clean refrigerator coils350
Use carafe instead of coffeemaker warmer 1hr/day300
Change furnace filters monthly vs. once per season150
Unplug cell phone charger70
Close refrigerator door quickly50
Keep refrigerator full, add water bottles, etc.20
Use ceiling fan in winter0
Close Drapes on winter nights unless good seal0
Hot Water Pipe Insulation  after first few feet0
Tune Up Gas Furnace (annual)0
Install Attic Fan0

How we made our list

Making the Best way to save energy and money took us months of resarch. We ended up with a list of actions you can take, the cost of those actions,  saving from those actions and CO2 savings. But the results were not complete. Some actions take much longer to have an impact on savings, especially on big ticket items, like replacing household items. Others had an instant effect, like getting rid of a second freezer at home.

Also from a frugal point of view, what if you didn’t take the suggested action and put the money in your investment account instead. Because the cost of replacing a furnace, for example, you pay the money up front but you save money afterward. One dollar today worths more than One dollar tomorrow because of positive inflation. The trends of energy prices suggest the energy costs will be lower in the future as well. Therefore the list turned into How much you can save in 10 years if you take the following action. Because 10 years is good enough time to compare the results and some household items have 10 years warranty.

The Formula

The actual data contains the Action, the Cost,  Savings per month, Savings per year, CO2 savings per year,  Savings in 10 years adjusted for inflation and put in an investment account monthly,  Co2 saving in 10 years,  Cost if the money was put in an investment account instead of doing the action,  Efficiency in 10 years(Savings minus Cost adjusted for inflation and put in an investment account). We also made tables for 20 years and 30 years as well. Very few household items last this long for example replacing windows.

The Data and Resources

We used the following data to calculate the real cost and saving of actions taken determining the best way to save money and energy at home.

Fidelity 500 index fund 5 years average 12/2/201614.35%
Fidelity 500 index fund 10 years average 12/2/20166.82%
Heating 400-1200 th/yr, average$1,500
Hot water, dryer, stove 150-250 th/yr$400
Electric 300 – 900 kWh/month for lights, appliances etc$1,500
CO21.3 lbs/kWh
U.S. Real Inflation Rate College tuition index 10year5%
Real return on investment  S&P 500 all time average5%
Real return on investment Fidelity 500 10year1.82%
Real return on investment Fidelity 500 5year9.35%
Average Carbon Footprint  CO2/year per American88000lbs
S&P 500 all time average 12/2/201610.13%
U.S. Average annual energy price increase nominal 10y2%
U.S. Average annual energy price increase real 10y-3%
  • EPA’s Energy Star site http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=home_improvement.hm_improvement_index
    www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=diy.diy_index
  • Affordable Comfort Inc. national & regional conferences for efficiency contractors, researchers, and policymakers
    www.affordablecomfort.org many handouts from conferences available free
  • Home Energy Magazine www.homeenergy.org good archive of older articles on wide variety of topics
    look up your refrigerator’s rated usage at http://www.homeenergy.org/consumerinfo/refrigeration2/refmods.php
  • ACEEE (American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy) Technical resource and advocacy group
    www.aceee.org/consumerguide/
  • Advanced Energy (North Carolina) good building science knowledge library, but the southern orientation
    www.advancedenergy.org/buildings/knowledge_library/index.html
  • €Building Science Corporation (Westford, MA) Extensive info about how houses work, how they fail, how they should be built, etc..
    www.buildingscience.com
  • Berkeley CoolClimate Calculator – CoolClimate Network  http://coolclimate.berkeley.edu/calculator

  • Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory https://emp.lbl.gov

2 Comments

  1. Stacy K. April 27, 2017
  2. IHM D. April 29, 2017

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